Newsletters
Secretary of State Marco Rubio is widely expected by Republican and British government sources to leave the Trump administration to launch a bid for the 2028 Republican presidential nomination, The Independent reported, though the White House and State Department have flatly rejected the claim.
Rubio also serves as White House national security adviser. According to the newspaper, insiders in the United States and the United Kingdom say he is preparing to run for the nomination in November 2028, with Vice President JD Vance seen as his main rival.
The sources said the expectation was in place even before the midterm elections, and hardened afterward.
The Independent reported that Republicans lost control of both the House and the Senate in the midterms, with Democrats taking Republican strongholds including Kansas and Texas. Rubio is one of as many as five cabinet members thought to be preparing to “run for the hills” after the defeat, the newspaper said.
One Washington insider said Rubio needs to “distance himself from the Iran war and pin that one on Trump.” A Rubio ally told the newspaper that leaving “makes complete sense,” and described him as the leading Republican candidate and “definitely ahead of Vance.” The ally added that Rubio cannot run while serving as secretary of state and that ties to the administration will only hurt his prospects.
Another Republican source predicted Rubio “will be gone after the midterms” and said voters had turned against Trump over the war and the cost of gasoline. That source also said Democratic control of Congress would bring impeachment efforts that “nobody wants to stick around for.”
Vance moved quickly after the results to blame the war in Iran, in what the newspaper described as an effort to distance himself from it.
“The reason we lost is the war,” he said, adding that the president himself had said so the previous night. He argued that any honest conversation about the party’s next steps “must start there.”
The Independent said Trump could try to pin blame for the policy and the election losses on Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, with Rubio and White House chief of staff Susie Wiles also seen as potential scapegoats.
It also noted that Rubio has played a “quieter role” on Iran, even though he leads American foreign policy.
The newspaper said a senior UK government source told it: “We are looking to see what he will do after the midterms. It seems unlikely that he will stick around.” The source said Rubio “would make a strong presidential candidate and we expect him to run.” British officials are said to hold him in high regard.
Yvette Cooper, one of three UK foreign secretaries he has worked with, is understood to regard him as “brilliantly intelligent.” The others are David Lammy and Ed Miliband, the current holder of the post.
Rubio’s path to the top of the administration has been unusual. He left a safe Florida Senate seat to become America’s top diplomat, and he clashed with Trump during his first White House bid a decade ago, when Trump mocked him as “Liddle Marco.”
In 2025 he was also given the acting leadership of the US Agency for International Development and the role of acting archivist, followed by the post of acting national security adviser three months after those.
The Independent said he now holds a degree of authority over foreign policy matched only by the late Henry Kissinger, the only other person to serve as secretary of state and national security adviser at the same time.
Even so, the newspaper said Rubio has been sidelined on Middle East policy and on efforts to end Russia’s war against Ukraine, where Trump has relied on envoys Steven Witkoff and Jared Kushner.
A campaign would also invite scrutiny of his part in Latin America policy, including airstrikes on small boats in the Caribbean alleged to be carrying narcotics, which critics call extrajudicial executions. It would also draw attention to his role in the administration’s relationship with interim Venezuelan president Delcy Rodriguez after the US-orchestrated ousting of Nicolas Maduro in January.
Rubio told reporters in September that he had “no plans at this time” for a White House bid and was “100 per cent focused” on his current roles. The newspaper said he has also indicated he would stand down if Vance runs.
Not all of the newspaper’s sources expect an exit. A longtime political operative from Rubio’s home state said he might delay leaving if it meant helping oversee the fall of Cuba’s communist government.
An administration insider said Rubio has shown no sign of wanting to quit, though that could change depending on the mood at the White House after the midterms.
A source close to the White House suggested he might stay to project stability and act as a moderating voice if Trump lashes out.
White House spokesperson Davis Ingle responded with insults and accused The Independent of “pushing baseless, false conspiracy theories.” A State Department statement attributed to assistant secretary Dylan Johnson called the reporting “completely baseless fake news from made-up anonymous ‘sources.’” It said the department looks forward to revisiting the report in the coming weeks.
Set as preferred source
Set as preferred source
2 min read
1 min read
